Former Ark. governor, senator
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Former Arkansas governor and U.S. Sen. David Pryor, a Democrat who was one of the state’s most beloved political figures and remained active in public service in the state long after he left office, has died. He was 89.
Mr. Pryor, who went undercover to investigate nursing homes while a congressman, died Saturday of natural causes in Little Rock surrounded by family, his son Mark Pryor, said. David Pryor was a heart attack and stroke survivor who was also hospitalized in 2020 after testing positive for COVID-19.
“I think he was a great model for public service. He was a great role model for politicians, but just for everyone in how we should treat each other and how we can make Arkansas better,” Mark Pryor, a former twoterm Democratic U.S. senator, said.
David Pryor was considered one of the party’s giants in Arkansas, alongside former President Bill Clinton and the late U.S. Sen. Dale Bumpers. He also served in the U.S. House and the Arkansas Legislature, and remained active in public life in recent years, including being appointed to the University of Arkansas’ Board of Trustees in 2009. He also attended the inauguration of Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders in January 2023.
In a statement Saturday, Clinton called Mr. Pryor “one of Arkansas’ greatest servant leaders and one of the finest people I have ever known,” saying he “fought for progressive policies that helped us put the divided past behind us and move into a
brighter future together.”
“David made politics personal — from his famed retail campaigning to his ability to calmly and confidently explain tough votes to his constituents,” Clinton said. “He was honest, compassionate, and full of common sense. He really loved the people he represented, and they loved him back.”
Sanders mourned Mr. Pryor’s passing, saying his “charisma and moderate politics made him a force at the ballot box for decades.”
Elected governor in 1974, replacing Bumpers, Mr. Pryor served four years before being elected to the U.S. Senate, where he won passage of a Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights in 1988. He called the legislation — which expanded citizens’ rights when dealing with the IRS — the “cornerstone” of his congressional career.
Mr. Pryor decided to not seek reelection in 1996, and he retired from elective office at the end of his term in early 1997.